Director James Cameron often includes references to his other films in his works, providing Easter eggs for eagle-eyed viewers, and this is true for theAvatarmovies too.In theAvatarmovies, there are numerous references to various films that Cameron has directed, such as theAvatartheme being eerily similar toTitanic’sscore.However, there are even more references to the 1986Aliensequel,Aliens, which followed Ellen Ripley as she journeys back to LV-426 to investigate why the Weyland-Yutani Corporation’s new colony has gone radio silent.
FollowingAliens, James Cameron made multiple successful films and started theAvatarfranchise in 2009, something which he had delayed due to lack of technology, and released its sequel,Avatar: The Way Of The Water, in 2023. With Cameron having a habit of referring to his other films,it comes as no surprise that theAvatarfranchise referencesAliens, especially as they both rank among thebest sci-fi movies.
James Cameron’sAvatar: The Way of Waterwon the 2023 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
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13Sigourney Weaver Plays A Big Role In Both Films
Ripley And Grace Are Leading Women
As the main protagonist for most of theAlienfranchise,Sigourney Weaver returns as Ellen Ripley for the first time inAliens.After surviving the events ofAlien, avoiding facehuggers, chestbursters, and a fully grown xenomorph, Ripley is found in her stasis pod bythe Weyland-Yutani Corporation. However, the company doesn’t believe her recounts of the events which caused the Nostromo to be destroyed, claiming that she is traumatized, and decide to send her back to LV-426 to investigate their colony’s loss of contact.
Sigourney Weaver stars inAvataras Dr Grace Augustine, the leading expert on the Na’vi. Being one of the few leading women scientists on the predominantly male military base means thatGrace’s concerns about the alien life on Pandora are often dismissed, and the men in charge brush her off as an overly paranoid scientist. However, she is right both times. It’s significant that bothAvatarandAliensnot only feature a strong female lead character, but that both roles are played by Weaver, connecting the properties.
12The RDA Is Similar To The Weyland-Yutani Corporation
The Companies Share Motivations And Aesthetics
2009’sAvatarfollows the RDA (Resources Development Administration) to the alien planet of Pandora in their mission to extract unobtanium, a rare and very expensive resource, from beneath the surface. The RDA sets up a military base on Pandora, using its gray and yellow military equipment to carve their own space on the planet in a rather invasive way.The company doesn’t seem to care who or what stands in their way and Quaritch embodies this mission.
The RDA is referred to as “the company” inAvatar, just like the Weyland-Yutani Corporation inAliens.
The RDA shares similarities withAliens’Weyland-Yutani Corporation, another company that invades a planet (LV-426) and sets up a military base to gain a rare object (the xenomorph). Both companies have similar personalities, asQuaritch and Carter Burke have a deadly dedication to the company, as well as similar base designs which have a dreary steel environment that the protagonists must navigate. The likeness of both companies has led to fan theories thatAliensandAvatarmight be set in the same universe, especially as their stories are only a few decades apart.
11The RDA Has Its Own United States Colonial Marine Corps
Cameron References The USCM In Avatar
Despite being a resource development company, the RDA employs a military-like organization called Security Operations, or Sec Ops, in order to protect their scientists from the seemingly hostile planet’s environment andPandora’s animals inAvatar’smovies.The military division ofAvatar’sRDA base often look down on the scientistsand treats everything on Pandora as a threat. This can be seen when Jake Sully becomes lost in the forest and tries to kill the thanators that surround him.
Both militaries use their brute strength against their enemies, operating advanced technology, and utilizing fire in order to defend their scientific co-workers from aliens.
The military inAvatarmirrors that ofAliens’USCM (United States Colonial Marine Corps), who are specifically stationed to help protect the Weyland-Yutani Corporation’s scientific efforts to collect a xenomorph. Both militaries use their brute strength against their enemies, operating advanced technology, and utilizing fire in order to defend their scientific co-workers from aliens. Also, despite not being associated specifically with America,the majority of the Sec Ops inAvatarare also American.
10Aliens And Avatar Reference The Vietnam War
Quaritch Has Some Iconic Lines
WhenAlienswas in production,James Cameron claimed thatAliensworked as an allegory for the Vietnam War, pitting the technologically advanced soldiers against an unseen enemy. A lot of the military design and dialogue takes influence from the Vietnam War, with Private Hudson referring to their mission as a “bug hunt.”Aliens’Vietnam War influences were famous in the franchise, especially as the war would have affected Cameron, with him being 17 at the time of the draft, so it is no surprise that Cameron references this inAvatartoo.
Michael Biehn, who played Hicks inAliens, was considered for the role of Quaritch inAvatarbefore Stephen Lang.
Avatar’sreferences to the use of Vietnam inAlienscanespecially be seen through Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang). Quaritch uses phrases such as “and that’s how you scatter the roaches” and “burn the hooches,” which are reminiscent of lingo used in the war. Furthermore,the use of fire and flamethrowers against the jungle-like setting of Pandora inAvataralso paints an allegory for the Vietnam War, just likeAliensdid.
The main difference betweenAvatarandAvatar: The Way Of The Waterwas the shift in theme, as family became more important to the plot.Jake Sully now has a Na’vi family of his own inAvatar’s2023 movie, which unfortunately means another weakness for the villain, an Avatar clone of Quaritch, to exploit. This is what happens in the final act of the movie, whenQuaritch takes the Sully children hostage so that Jake will meet his demands. In a reversal of this, Neytiri also takes Quaritch’s son Spider hostage to threaten him into returning her own children.
Children are also used as hostages at the end ofAliens, in whichRipley threatens to destroy the xenomorph queen’s eggs unless she is able to escapewith her surrogate daughter, Newt. WhileAlienshad the protagonist at an advantage in this situation, Cameron flipped it on its head inAvatarand referenced the iconic moment through Quaritch.
8Newt And Lo’ak Secretly Learned Their Enemy’s Ways
Cameron’s Child Characters Mirror Each Other
When the xenomorphs take over the colony inAliens,a young girl called Newt manages to survive the xenomorph attack by hiding away in a vent while the xenomorphs roam the base. As the sole survivor of the xenomorph attack, this is no small feat, and Ripley decides to adopt Newt and help the young girl escape at the end of the film. James Cameron references this inAvatar: The Way Of The Waterwith Lo’ak and Payakan.
As an outcast, Payakan is seen as a dangerouswhale-like tulkun who must be left alone inAvatar: The Way Of The Water. However,Lo’ak defies the order to stay away and spends time with the lonely Payakan,eventually learning the truth behind his outcast status. While Newt is hiding from her dangerous enemy and does not form the same connection that Lo’ak does, she is still (unwillingly) living among them and learning their ways, offering another trend in James Cameron’s works.
7Avatar’s Exosuit Is Taken Directly From Aliens
The Power Loader Served As A Weapon
AlthoughAliensis not the first to use an exosuit, its Power Loader was iconic for a number of reasons. The exoskeleton suit was originally designed to help ordinary people to lift heavy cargo via hydraulic arms so that they can be moved precisely around the ship. However,Ripley cleverly uses the suit inAliens’final battle against the xenomorph queen, in order to match the creature’s size and offer herself some protection against the xenomorph’s attacks in one ofAliens’best scenes.
As another movie in the sci-fi genre, it comes as no surprise thatAvataralso uses exosuits in its movies, although they are renamed as Amplified Mobility Platforms, as they are very useful for traversing Pandora’s huge flora as well as providing the user with breathable air. James Cameron takes this one step further, however, making a direct reference toAliensin a reversal of roles,asthe villainous Quaritch uses the exosuit to battle Jake Sully in his large avatar form in order to even the odds in their final battle.
6Neytiri Mirrors Ripley As A Mother Warrior
Cameron Likes Strong Female Leads
Neytiri was introduced as an extremely capable warrior of the Omatikaya clan inAvatar, and this did not change in the sequel, even after she had children. As a mother, Neytiri is very protective of her children, including her adopted daughter, Kiri, as seen when she and Jake rush to save them from Quaritch at the beginning ofAvatar: The Way Of Water. Unfortunately, the emotional final act of the film sees the Sully’s oldest child, Neteyam, killed by a bullet wound after heroically saving his siblings from a burning boat.
When Ripley wakes up 57 years after the events ofAlien, she discovers that her daughter, Amanda, has died of old age. Following this, when she meets Newt on LV-426, she takes on a motherly role, ensuring she is safe and well looked after throughout the film. Therefore,Ripley’s character is referenced through Neytiri, as they are both strong female warriors who have children they have lost, and they both have adopted daughters.
One of the most obvious references inAvatar’ssequel is a scene which directly copies a scene fromAliens.As Quaritch’s ship begins to sink in the final battle ofAvatar: The Way Of The Water, the Sully family is trying to escape, whenTuk suddenly falls down a tunnel-like section of the ship as Neytiri desperately reaches out to save her. After failing to reach her youngest daughter, Neytiri dives in after Tuk and the two are reunited inside the ship, although they remain lost until Kiri eventually rescues them.
Avatar’sscene is almost a direct copy of the scene fromAliensin which Newt falls down a shaftafter leading Ripley through the utility tunnels. Newt eventually ends up in a waterlogged tunnel which she cannot escape from, despite Ripley desperately trying to reach through the bars, and the xenomorphs take her. The angle of the fall and the scene’s composition is pretty similar to Tuk’s fall inAvatar: The Way Of The Water, and the fact that Tuk also ends up in a water-filled environment only adds to thisAliensreference.
I’m Worried About Avatar 3’s Neytiri Story After The Way Of Water’s Tragic Spider Moment
After Avatar: The Way of Water’s ending, it looks like Avatar 3 could further focus on Neytiri’s hatred of Spider, but this would be a terrible idea.
4Avatar Uses The Same CN-20 Gas From Aliens
The Gas Cannisters Look Familiar
In the firstAvatar, in order to drive the Na’vi out of their Home Tree to mine the area for unobtanium, Quaritch first orders the Sec Ops to launch a gas attack on the natives.The gas cannisters can be seen on the ships being launched out at the Na’vi’s homeand appears to be an irritant more than a deadly weapon as the Na’vi are not seriously injured by it. However, this gas has been mentioned before inAliens.
CN-20 is mentioned by Private Vasquez inAlienswhen the group is brainstorming of ways to attack the xenomorphs. Vasquez specifically mentions that CN-20 is a nerve gas, which is a gas that attacks the nervous system, causing the muscles to contract, and eventually leading to death. AlthoughAliensonly mentions the gas, there is an official card game which features a picture of the gas canister, and it looks eerily similar toAvatar’s.
